NBAA Maintenance Conference draws in over 1,000 registered attendees

The NBAA announced on Thursday that over 1,000 attendees came to its 2026 Maintenance Conference in New Orleans. The conference opened on Tuesday with NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen speaking on multiple aviation topics, including the importance of aviation maintenance specialists in regard to safety. He also covered the NBAA's work as a member of the Modern Skies Coalition, its work to bring back zero-for-zero tariffs and 100% bonus depreciation. Keynote Speaker David Rendall focused on changing views on people's perceived weaknesses as strengths. He used the Leaning Tower of Pisa as an example, stating that while leaning would typically be seen as a problem for buildings, millions of people travel to see it because it leans."At NBAA, we're safety first, we're safety always. That's been true since the beginning," said Bolen. "Safety has always been the cornerstone of NBAA. There's no group that cares more and has a bigger impact on safety than the technicians." "I've always been different in ways I didn't choose, but I've learned the value of deciding to be different," said Rendall. "If we want people to have brighter futures, we have to change the way we see people. Weaknesses are pluses to our strengths." RELATED STORIES: NBAA announces record-breaking attendance at SDC2026 NBAA holds CLIMBING. FAST. Fly-In to discuss goal of net-zero carbon emissions NBAA joins Joint Aviation Community coalition to detail industry views There were presentations from 50 subject matter experts and more than two dozen education sessions that followed the conference's theme of Big Easy, Bright Future. The exhibit hall featured more than 150 companies, with 42% of the attendees being first-time visitors. There were several targeted receptions and networking occasions for professionals and aviation maintenance students. 27 recipients received NBAA's Maintenance Committee presented Maintenance AMT Scholarships and Hilsmann Memorial Scholarships, while over $23,000 was raised at the conference to be used in future maintenance scholarships.